Attorney A, who is on parental leave, said on the 23rd, "I thought I could at least cover diaper costs for the baby by doing 'paperwork gigs' writing complaints and demand letters while on leave, but once I actually took leave, there was almost no work." When asked why, the attorney answered, "These days it's not lawyers but AI (artificial intelligence) that writes complaints and demand letters."
◇ "Four years ago, I was picky about side work writing complaints… now it's one or two a week"
Until just a few years ago, paperwork gigs were a decent way for lawyers on leave to make some pocket money. Even practicing lawyers, when their income felt short, could easily pick up side jobs by posting online ads that said, "We write complaints and demand letters." But the situation has recently changed.
Attorney Kim said, "Four years ago, I got one or two requests a day to write complaints and demand letters—enough that I had to pick and choose—but now I barely get one or two a week." Kim added, "At this rate, the market for writing complaints and demand letters itself may soon disappear."
Attorney Lee also said, "In the past, I could cover a significant portion of an employee's monthly salary through side work writing complaints and demand letters," adding, "Now that this isn't possible, I either have to take on more cases myself or reduce staff."
As AI's capabilities improve and adoption spreads, AI rather than lawyers is increasingly writing complaints and demand letters. A lawyer at a major law firm said, "To be honest, getting help from AI is more efficient in terms of expense and time than finding a lawyer, getting in touch, negotiating fees, and handing over work." However, the lawyer noted, "It's still hard for AI to handle drafting tasks 100% on its own, and a human touch is still needed."
◇ "Major law firms are building their own AI… office jobs are also under threat"
Recently, major law firms have been building and using their own AI systems. Kim & Chang is reportedly using in-house an AI-based translation program and key legal document summarizing and review programs it built itself. Shin & Kim has also been developing and using a separate internal AI program since early this year.
A lawyer at a major law firm said, "Depending on how far in-house AI programs advance, the position of new lawyers, who mainly handle research and draft briefs, could be greatly shaken."
Some also say AI could threaten general office jobs in the legal industry. Attorney Kim Seong-su of Law Firm Gwangya said, "Young solo practitioners tend not to hire office managers, secretaries, or translators at all," adding, "There is even talk that buying and using a paid generative AI model is far better in terms of expense and work efficiency."
The outlook that AI would handle nearly half of legal work already emerged in 2023. Goldman Sachs, a U.S. investment bank, said in a report titled "The potentially large effects of AI on economic growth" that "44% of all legal work could be automated through AI." There was also an analysis that when a U.S. law firm applied AI technology to corporate due diligence, workload per employee fell by 48% and work efficiency rose by 22%.